Rating of
3/4
J. Edgar review
Daniel Corleone - wrote on 07/30/12
J. Edgar Hoover (Leonardo DiCaprio) was presented in his youth and twilight years. He informs his mother (Judi Dench) that he becomes the Director for Bureau of Investigation while hiring Helen Gandy (Naomi Watts) as his personal secretary. Hoover then handpicks his division and hires Clyde Tolson (Armie Hammer). DiCaprio's performance was spectacular and Dench always impresses. The beginning of how Hoover started was interesting, and then the pace dwindles after he made the personal arrests. Soundtrack was almost non-existent though the camera angles was still solid. It's plot and direction were somewhat confusing since it shifted back and forth too many times in the senior and humble beginnings of J. Edgar. Information about the person was detailed though not as though as it could have been to determine the history of his preference and the actual unique benefits given to him to fight crime. Through the screenplay was not that fascinating, there were a few noteworthy lines from Hoover - "Even great men can be corrupted, can't they?" "When morals decline and good men do nothing, evil flourishes. A society unwilling to learn from past is doomed." J. Edgar is an insightful look at one of the most efficient and innovative enforcers in the US whose personal life never tarnished his image and where trust and ideas were utilized to catch evildoers.
